Saw 2

"Saw 2" is a very big disappointment when compared to the original. I remember being excited after seeing "Saw", and even gave it an A-. Not this time.

Whereas the first story dealt with two men being held hostage by an unseen killer, "Saw 2" tries to tell a much bigger story with many more characters. With this type of story you really don't care about the people in the movie, you just want to know just how brutal their death is going to be. This time there are multiple hostages being held in a dilapidated house where they are slowly being poisoned by a nerve toxin. Trying to save them is a police detective (Donnie Wahlburg) whose estranged son just happens to be one of the hostages.

There are certainly graphic moments, such as when the recovering heroin addict is pushed into a pit filled with dirty needles, or when one hostage tries to....well lets just say there's a key to freedom embedded in his eye socket. But while "Saw" was a shocking mental trip, "Saw 2" just doesn't live up, or hold up. Only fans of "Saw" will go to see "2", but they will leave disappointed. I give it a C-.

"Saw 2" is rated R with a running time of 91 minutes.